Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell confirmed that Mitch Lewis is set to return to the side this week, should he get through Thursday's training, set to bolster the 18th placed Hawks outfit.
Lewis suffered an ACL sprain in the pre-season, and suffered a setback on his other knee and is yet to play in 2023. The 24-year-old kicked 37 goals in 15 games last year and will provide some much needed strength up forward for the Hawks.
Mitchell said that Lewis will come straight back into the seniors after completing a strong block of training on Sunday.
"As long as he gets through training today, he'll come straight back into the side," Mitchell told reporters.
"He looks match ready, all we want from him is play his role and do his job.
"Everyone walks taller when Mitch is out there. We're glad he's back and he's worked hard."
Mitchell addressed controversial comments which had been made by captain James Sicily on Wednesday regarding Tasmania and the possibility of being based in the state, as the AFL looks to introduce a 19th team.
"I had a good chat with him, he's got to learn from this. He's frustrated it's not what he mean, it's not a reflection of his thinking, but as the captain of the club he needs to be better," Mitchell said.
"We love our time in Tassie. More than half of the players actually stayed in Tassie, including James, after the game and spent some extra time there."
Pick No.18 in the 2022 NAB AFL Draft, Josh Weddle, is also close to debuting for Hawthorn.
Weddle was a standout in the Box Hill Hawks 71-point win over Coburg on the weekend, collecting 27 disposals and 10 marks.
"He's close to a debut. Two weeks ago I had a chat with him and told him he was AFL ready. He deserves a game, but there's a lot of variables in that," Mitchell revealed.
"He's right in the mix. Depending on how we want to structure the team he could potentially come in."
Hawthorn will play the Bulldogs on Saturday at 4:35pm (AEST) at Marvel Stadium.
